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People For 2030 – UNDP’s People Strategy for Building Better Futures
Launched in June 2019, People for 2030 is UNDP’s strategy to progressively transform its culture and enhance its capacity, enabling the organization to deliver more impactful and sustainable results. It is critical to UNDP’s ability to remain resilient, agile, and future-ready in a rapidly changing world. This means reimagining how UNDP attracts, develops, supports, and empowers its workforce to effectively implement the Strategic Plan and stay responsive to current and future challenges.
People for 2030 recognizes that people are UNDP’s greatest asset and fosters a culture where every individual can thrive and contribute their best. It promotes high performance by creating opportunities for continuous learning and development, while underscoring the vital role of managers and leaders in shaping dynamic, engaged teams. Ultimately, the strategy drives impact by creating an environment where both people and the organization flourish—positioning UNDP as a global leader in sustainable development.
Building on the achievements of the first two phases, UNDP has now launched its third and final phase of the People for 2030 Strategy.
About People for 2030 Phase 3
Phase 3 of People for 2030 (2025–2030) aims to solidify a future-ready workforce and deepen a culture grounded in high performance, learning, leadership, and well-being. It also expands UNDP’s role as a trusted provider of people management solutions across the UN system and in support of Member States. At its core, phase 3 is about embedding a people-first approach in how UNDP works, leads, and delivers, ensuring the organization is equipped to meet the demands of the future.
Download People for 2030 Phase 3 (2025–2030): Strategy document
Download People for 2030 Phase 3 (2025–2030): Summary
This final phase of the Strategy translates vision into action by building on the progress and investments of the past six years through five key action areas:
Phase 2 of People for 2030 (2022–2025) advanced UNDP’s shift from a transactional HR model to a strategic, data-driven, and people-centered approach. Key achievements included the integration of workforce planning, talent acquisition, learning, career development, and performance management into a unified framework that supports the Strategic Plan. The launch of the Integrated Talent Management System transformed how UNDP attracts, develops, and retains talent strengthening mobility and expanding career pathways. Leadership development was also prioritized, and the People Index was introduced as the first organization-wide metric linking people experience to delivery performance, enabling smarter, more inclusive decision-making across the organization.
People for 2030 Phase 2 (2022–2025): Strategy Document
People for 2030 Phase 2 (2022–2025): Progress Report (Oct 2023)
People for 2030 Phase 2 (2022–2025): Achievements Summary
Phase 1 of People for 2030 (2019–2021) laid the foundation for UNDP’s people strategy, and kick-started a shift toward a more modern, integrated approach to people management. By the end of 2021, 95% of the Strategy’s recommendations had been implemented, with strong progress on the remaining issues. The phase delivered tangible improvements and visible organizational change, setting the stage for deeper transformation in subsequent phases.
The People for 2030: Achievements Report details the progress made during this critical first phase.
A group of UNDP JPOs at workshop in Copenhagen, October 2022.
People for 2030 is designed to support you at every stage of your UNDP career.
Our integrated talent management system fosters an inclusive work culture, drives high performance and creates paths for development. It ensures you have the resources to grow and thrive, both professionally and personally. At UNDP, we believe working with us is more than a job – it’s a path to a truly rewarding and fulfilling career.
Since its launch in 2019, People for 2030 has resulted in real progress for UNDP personnel and visible transformation across the organisation. Our multi-award-winning Graduate Programme is providing career opportunities to talented individuals from under-represented communities. We have introduced new ways of listening to and gathering feedback from our personnel to shape our culture. We continue to sustain. You can find out more by checking out our latest Progress Report.
People for 2030 and its initiatives have so far garnered several prestigious awards for UNDP:
- 2022 CIPD Award for Best Talent Management Initiative for the Graduate Programme.
- 2022 Recruiter Award for Most Effective Emerging Talent Recruitment for the Graduate Programme.
- 2022 CIPD Award for Best Learning and Development Initiative in Public Sector for UNDP’s leadership programme - Leaders for 2030.
- 2021 Award for Innovation in Recruitment from the International Organizations Career Development Roundtable for the Graduate Programme.
- UNDP was ranked as Second-best UN entity for Internships at the 2021 Fair Internship Initiative.